Tinder grants do-overs, transatlantic swiping with paid version

Tinder, the popular dating app, wants to offer a second chance at love for users who may passed on a potential mate.

Tinder, the popular dating app, wants to offer a second chance at love for users who may passed on a potential mate.

For a price, users can now undo their most recent left-swipe on someone's profile, which signals disinterest. Another new feature, called Passport, lets users search for people in other locations beyond their pre-selected geographic radius.

Pricing details were not disclosed at the time of launch on Monday, though the cost of upgrading in San Francisco is US$19.99 per month. A report in TechCrunch cited a monthly fee of US$9.99, but it appears the price might vary from market to market. Tinder, based in Los Angeles, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Users can upgrade on both iOS and Android by tapping the blue location icon on the main screen.

Tinder has been testing the paid version of its app in Europe over the past couple of months. On the surface, the new options seem like useful features to have for power users who are willing to pay a premium. In Tinder's app, profiles appear based on where the user is located. A right swipe on the profile signals interest, a left swipe, no. If two people both swipe right, they can message each other within the app.

Regular users can find themselves swiping rapidly through the profiles, so realizing only a second later you wanted to swipe right instead of left is not uncommon.

Tinder does not have any ads in its app yet, though the company is reportedly in the process of incorporating them. This now seems imminent, because on the sign-up screen for Tinder Plus, the company also cites this feature: "Turn off ads."